One word

Dizzy


- iP

After the op

Here's a pic taken in the Recovery Ward. Still alive, head spinning slightly. Throat very dry from local anaesthetic and still on a drip, saline. Had a little nose-bleed probably from the tube they pushed down there.

Good thing I did all that swimming - given me a bit of strength against the surgical onslaught I think.







Light on not many home

Do this side 



At home, three weeks 'til switch-on
Ahhhh there's the switch now

It's on TOMORROW

Yep at 6:30 am tomorrow I'll be wheeled in and away we go. The operation will last about 15 seconds from my point-of-view. Several hours from your point-of-view.

But
I won't be able to hear any better until SWITCH-ON in a couple of weeks. Even then it remains to be seen/heard.

So be in touch - I can still do email and monitor comments. Let me hear YOUR news!

Cinema Access Saturday

On Saturday 13 February a group of about fifty from all walks of life gathered to protest the lack of accessible cinema sessions in Australia.
We gathered at the cinema complex in George St 'Events', formerly Hoyts.
They were joined in other cities across the country.

Here are some pics from the Sydney group [clicking the image to go the album and see larger ones]

From Blog Pics

Action on Cinema Access

There's action brewing in response to the cinema chains wanting to shirk their responsibility with regard to access to cinemas for hearing-impaired and other people.


Protest on Saturday 13 February
The Sydney protest is scheduled for 11am at 525 George St - the cinema complex.
Other locations on the Facebook page - http://tinyurl.com/deafaction10


Here's the post

Attend your local protest in each of the following capital cities on Saturday 13 February at 11am, local time: Melbourne: On the street infront of Greater Union Cinema, 131 Russell St, Melbourne Brisbane: In the Queen Street Mall outside 167 Queen Street Hobart: On the street in front of 181 Collins St, Hobart Sydney: On the street in front of 525 George St, Sydney Perth: On the street in front of Millenium Hoyts, 8 William Street, Fremantle Adelaide: On the street in front of Wallis Piccadilly, 181 O’Connell St, Nth Adelaide

Need to write a letter? Check -  this link - draft letter in doc, text and pdf formats

Date confirmed

Have now received the letter with the details, so it's all go for 17 February


- iP

Erskineville

I hear the train a'comin




- iP

Audioloop at the Museum of Sydney

Last night I visited the Museum of Sydney (for a slideshow on Gardens of Spain)

The telecoil and audioloop setup in the AGL theatre worked perfectly - the best I've ever experienced!
The speaker was easily understandable, and not once did I feel the need for captions.

Timeline

See  upcoming events in the Calendar, now online

2018
22 October 2018
10 years a CIborg!!

28 June 2018
Visit to Vincent Van Gogh museum Amsterdam

-
2017
7 February 2017
Switch-on Number 3

20 January 2017
Blind Sac right side, implant upgrade


-
2016
September 2016
Joined research study

-
2015
March 2015
Upgrade for the left side, to N6

-
2013

12 November 2013

5 years since 1st switch-on

20 October 2013

5 years since first implant operation

31 July 2013

5 years since I woke-up deaf

May 2013
Upgrade for the right side, to N6

-
2012

10 or 13 June 2012

10 years past treatment - Head and Neck Surgeon doesn't want to see me again!

-

2010
11 March 2010
Switch-on Number 2!!

17 February 2010
Second implant operation

17 February 2010
Second implant due
-
2009
--
August 2009
Blind Sac operation, in preparation for number 2
-

July 2009
Overseas travel with a CI. Round-the-World! Thanx for nothing American Airlines!
-

2008

--
12 November 2008 9:30am

Switch-on

-

22 October

Cochlear Implant operation

-

20 October

Peri-operative testing, RPA

-

3 October

Meet with Cochlear Implant recipient

-
19 September
Initial meeting, Audiologist at SCIC HQ

-
20 August
Initial appointment, Cochlear specialist

-
7 August
No change, referred to Cochlear specialist

-
1 August
Steroid injection through eardrum

-
31 July
I woke with no hearing

--
before 2008
-
2002
Diagnosis and treatment, Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

-
2001
Acme Computer founded

-
1983
My first blocked Eustachian tubes

-
1 August 1978
First Cochlear Implant implanted [not mine]

News Just In

I have been advised today that my second implant will be implanted on Wednesday, 17 February 2010. At RPAH.

Gifts and floral tributes should be presented to those closest to you, or even those not very close, say in Haiti.

This is exciting!

Still waiting

Well here we are on National Straya, snag on the barbie day and no appointment.

To console me in my moment of nationalistic jingo, the higgledy-piggledy birds have been chortling their merry tunes out all morning. It is fitting that they might also be called Butcher Birds with their little blue-and-white-striped aprons.

Suppose we'll have to chuck another snag on the barbie, call everyone "mate", wear our hats with corks and discuss detention centres just to show how truly bluey we are around here, mate. And lubricated with ample quantities of VB. One's my limit.

"Strayans all are ostriches..." Sing it, mate! 

Bouquets and Buckets

Swimming at Victoria Park

Still splishing and a'splashing at Victoria Park.
Thought I'd better check Google Maps and hey presto - I can see something there in the slow lane. It could be me, if they've done an update recently.
Today back to ten laps swimming and 4 laps walking.

I figure the best time is about 8:30 AM - the pre-work swimmers have left for work and the mothers' clubbers, having despatched hubbie to the coalface, have yet to finish their lattes. And the filter has been on all night to dredge out yesterday's bandaids and other unmentionable artefacts. Ugh! Gives me an hour or so...

What's Happening?

At this stage, who knows.

Today I received a letter from a doctor I've never been to advising that an appointment has been made for me.

Seems strange and a bit bewildering that I can't get a reasonable answer to my request for info, but I'm approached by a perfect stranger offering to operate on me with little/no history.

Of course I can't speak to anyone - Xmas holidays.

Hmm

Posted with LifeCast

Have your say about Disability Rights

Here's another questionnaire
http://www.disabilityrightsnow.org.au/

Go to Australian Shadow Report then Shadow Report Survey to complete the questionnaire

More Swimming News

Today 6 January
6 laps walking, 15 laps swimming. Yay!

Posted with LifeCast

Microphone tip

This may apply to some hearing aids as well - I don't know

With your Cochlear Implant, freedom style you may have received an extension lapel microphone.

Here's a technique I have found to be quite handy, when out in the backyard - against cicadas, birds aeroplanes, wind and background noise.

Connect the lapel microphone to your speech processor - get your audiologist to show you if you don't know how.

Using a piece of velcro or sticky tape attach the microphone body to a chopstick on bamboo skewer, say 30cm long.

Now you can 'interview' your guests - this puts the microphone closer to them by 0.5m. I find the 'noise reduction' setting to be the most effective.

Also - too much wind? In the TV/video industry they use a fluffy microphone called a 'dead cat'. They don't exist in the size we need - 1cm x 2cm.

I have used a spectacle soft drawstring bag to good effect and will try a finger from a children's glove. This will fit better and be less cumbersome.

More tips as they come to hand...

Latest results just in

Now, today [9 December] I had the latest in my run of tests of this cochlear implant [still on number one, right ear] and my hearing experience with it.

The tests were as prescribed in CUNY sentences [Central University of New York]
in quiet and noisy situations

Results

quiet sentences 65dB SPL	100%
with noise +10%SNR	98%
with noise +5%SNR	27%

CNC words [consonant nucleus consonant]
Interesting link [word doc]

words	58%
vowels	84%
consonants	73%
phonemes	77%

Abbreviations

SPL - Sound Pressure Level

SNR - Signal Noise Ratio

Interesting Cochlear document link
Phonemes Wikipedia definition here
Decibels Wikipedia page here


Pretty good results apparently.
The sentences were easy, but context and lack of distraction helped.
Because I did so well with sentences and noise, Monica upped the noise an extra 5% and that was that. I was able to get a word here and then, but...

In the words section my results are about average that someone who has two implants might expect, so that's a pretty good result. However when I have number two maybe my increased capacity won't be as dramatic.

Well we'll just have to see.

Still Going

Tuesday
4 laps walking
6 laps swimming, faster

The pool is definitely better first thing in the morning. Too many dawdlers and suspicious people after lunch.

This blog goes 'round the world

Interesting places I have seen on the Traffic Feed - lower right.
Those with • I have been to, but not because of the blog or their contact.
Theres even a map! here

Belfort France •
Bilbao Spain •
Crows Nest  Straya•
Atlanta USA
Philadelphia USA
Houston USA
Texarkana USA
Sanata Ana USA
Washington DC USA •
Seoul Korea
Halifax Canada
Hong Kong China
Islamabad Pakistan
Honolulu USA •

Lutherville Timonium USA [Great name!!]